Trace-buckle



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PHILIP HAYES, E wAYNETowN, INDIANA.

TRACE-BUCKLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 279,382, dated June 12, 1883.

Application filed April '23, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom/.it may concern:

Be it known that I, PHILIP HAYES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Waynetown, in the county of Montgomery and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trace-Buckles, of which the followi ng is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention has relation to improvements in that class of buckles used in harness whereby the trace is connected to the pad skirt or girth; and it consists in the novel construction and arrangement of the various parts of which it is composed7 all as will be hereinafter more fully explained.

The annexed drawings, to which reference is made, fully illustrate Iny invention, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of my buckle. Fig. 2 is a face view of the same, and 2o Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the buckle. Referring to the accompanying drawings by letter, A designates the buckle, having curved side bars, a, that are formed with depressions b in their upper face to admit the pad skirt or 2 5 girthc, and at the forward end the buckle is provided with a cross-bar, d, and the rear end Vwith a cross-bar, e, that serve to connect the side bars to one another. At the rear end of said buckle the side bars incline forward and 3o upward, and are connected by a cross-bar, f, to which is formed a loop, g, that is y designed to receive the breeching-strap of the harness. B indicates a broad plate, one end of which is provided with an eye, h, that connects with the cross-barf, and thus forming a hinge therefor. Said plate is provided on its under face with a pin or tongue, j, (which is arranged in the center between the hinge end and the opposite end thereto,) that enters one of the holes 4o in the trace, and at the same time passes through one of the holes in the pad skirt or girth, thus connecting theparts'to one another. tThe forward or free end of the plate is provided with a transverse groove, n, extending from side to side, in which rests the cross-bar m', and serves as a keeper for the link 7c, and

in connection with the side iiangesz n', of the plate the several parts are securely connected, and accidental displacement of the parts is prevented.

It will be observed from the above description, and by reference to the drawings, that the operation of fastening the trace and girth with the buckle and unfastening the same, as well as adjusting trace to different positions, is very simple, as the operator simply Inoves the two portions 'of the trace toward one another, thus disengaging the link 7c from the end of the plate B, when the tongue can be withdrawn and the trace adjusted higher or lower on the pad skirt or girth, or thetrace canbelengthened or shortened, and when so adjusted the'tongue is again inserted in the holein the trace, also the hole in the girth, after which the trace is dr. wn taut and the plate B firmly held in place.

It will be noticed that by my construction of the buckle the trace as well as the girth passes in a straight line through the buckle, and the tongue serves to connect the trace with the girth, and therefore the leather cannot be broken or cut, and labor as well as material is saved in the harness.

Having described my invention, what I claim In a trace-buckle, the combination,with the buckle A, provided with depressions b b in its side bars, and link 7c, of the hinged plate B, having transverse groove n, side flangesm n', and provided with the tongue j in its center between the hinge end. and the opposite free end, which pin is adapted to pass through the trace and girth, whereby said trace, girth, and buckle are secured to one another, as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

PHILIP HAY-ES.

Witnesses:

GEO. B. MoCoY, H. J. VVEBsTEI-c. 

